2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland

It’s not easy to decide which college to attend when there so many options available for students. At College Factual, we’re committed to helping you make that decision by providing information such as that found in our “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland” ranking.

In 2019-2020, 6,820 people earned their degree in area studies, making the major the 106th most popular in the United States. In 2017-2018, area studies graduates who were awarded their degree in 2015-2017, earned an average of $33,734 and had an average of $23,024 in loans still to pay off.

Across Maryland, there were 151 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $38,500 and $22,237 respectively. At the bachelor’s degree level specifically, there were 117 area studies graduates with average earnings and debt of $40,371 and $23,982 respectively.

For this year’s “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland” ranking, we looked at 4 colleges that offer a degree in area studies. The schools that top this list are recognized because they have great area studies programs and cost less that schools of similar quality.

When determining these rankings, we looked at things such as overall quality of the area studies program at the school and the cost to attend the school once aid has been awarded. Check out our ranking methodology for more information.

More Ways to Rank Area Studies Schools

Since the program you select can have a significant impact on your future, we’ve developed a number of rankings, including this “Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland” list, to help you choose the best school for you.

To further help you make the college decision, we’ve developed a unique tool called College Combat that allows you to compare schools based on the factors that matter the most to you. We encourage you to try it out and pit your favorite colleges and universities head to head! If you don’t have time right now, you can bookmark it for later.

Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland

The colleges and universities below are the best for maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students.

Top 4 Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies in Maryland

#1

University of Maryland Global Campus

Adelphi, Maryland

#2 in overall quality

$14,288 Average Net Price

$55,964 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland that were part of this year’s ranking, University of Maryland Global Campus landed the #1 spot on the list. This large school is located in Adelphi, Maryland, and it awarded 38 bachelors’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

As a testament to the quality of education offered at UMGC, the school also landed the #2 spot in our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Maryland” ranking. The yearly cost to attend UMGC is $14,288 for maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students.

Read more about Area Studies at UMGC

#2

University of Maryland - College Park

College Park, Maryland

#1 in overall quality

$19,045 Average Net Price

$41,565 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Maryland - College Park. It ranked #2 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland list. UMCP is a large school located in College Park, Maryland that handed out 25 bachelors’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

In addition to being on our maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students list, UMCP has also earned the #1 rank in our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Maryland” ranking. The estimated yearly cost for University of Maryland - College Park is $19,045 for maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students.

The low student loan default rate of 2.4% is a good sign that students have an easier time paying off their loans than they might at other schools. For comparison, the national default rate is 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 95%.

Read more about Area Studies at UMCP

#3

Towson University

Towson, Maryland

#3 in overall quality

$18,233 Average Net Price

$46,790 Average Early-Career Earnings

Out of the 4 schools in the Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland that were part of this year’s ranking, Towson University landed the #3 spot on the list. Towson University is a large school located in Towson, Maryland that handed out 12 bachelors’s area studies degrees in 2019-2020.

Towson also made our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Maryland” list, coming in at #3. The estimated yearly cost for Towson is $18,233 for maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students.

Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 85%. The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 3.8%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%.

Read more about Area Studies at Towson University

#4

University of Maryland - Baltimore County

Baltimore, Maryland

#4 in overall quality

$19,082 Average Net Price

$28,236 Average Early-Career Earnings

You’ll be in good company if you decide to attend University of Maryland - Baltimore County. It ranked #4 on our 2022 Best Value Area Studies Schools for a Bachelor’s in Maryland list. UMBC is located in Baltimore, Maryland and, has a fairly large student population. In 2019-2020, this school awarded 18 bachelors’s area studies degrees to qualified students.

UMBC did well in our major quality rankings, too. It placed #4 on our “Best Area Studies Bachelor’s Degree Schools in Maryland” list. The estimated yearly cost for University of Maryland - Baltimore County is $19,082 for maryland bachelor’s degree area studies students.

The school has an impressive student loan default rate. It’s only 4.3%, which is much lower than the national rate of 10.1%. Students who start out at the school are likely to stick around. The freshman retention rate is 87%.

Full UMBC Area Studies Report

• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies in the Middle Atlantic Region
• Best Value Bachelor’s Degree Colleges for Area Studies

Notes and References

References

• The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), a branch of the U.S. Department of Education (DOE) serves as the core of our data about colleges.
• Some other college data, including much of the graduate earnings data, comes from the U.S. Department of Education’s (College Scorecard).
• Information about the national average student loan default rate is from the U.S. Department of Education and refers to data about the 2016 borrower cohort tracking period for which the cohort default rate (CDR) was 10.1%.

Read more about our data sources and methodologies

Footnotes

• *Average salary, average net price, and average tuition and fees are for the top schools only.
• Some schools otherwise deserving of recognition may have been removed from this ranking in the event that new data identified post-publication warranted it, or at the request of the school.

Credits

• Credit for the banner image above goes to Karl Udo Gerth.

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